paperwork
by blownspirit
Summary: "You into black magic or something?" Eddie is beginning to expect she is, the way she makes him feel. A reddie fic, set in series 3.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter I

Eddie watched as the new head began to rearrange the office which had, just moments earlier, been his own, a scowl forming on his face. This had been his moment to prove himself and now the school faced yet more upheaval as a new woman came steamrolling in with yet another set of rules and objectives and no understanding of the pupils and their circumstances. She looked up at him expectantly, her smile dropping slightly as it became apparent that Eddie Lawson was no ally of hers'. "So, these plans of yours'; care to expand?" he asked, his voice coming out a little harsher than he had planned.

As she began to tell him about her 'vocational courses' and 'business and enterprise status' Eddie could feel his blood boiling. This Rachel woman was obviously just here to do what the LEA asked in order to improve her own CV.

"Hang on a minute, where's the money to pay for all this?" he demanded.

"Oh, I wouldn't have accepted the job offer without the promise of hard cash," she told him, he voice now steely and her posture defensive. This one's not going to be a pushover, he thought as she sat herself down in his chair.

Reading through her new file, he couldn't deny that the ideas were well-presented, though he would never have told her that. Rachel then asked him to set up a meeting with the rest of the staff that break which he thought should be entertaining. He couldn't wait to see Grantley's reaction to her.

By the time break rolled around, it seemed that she'd already upset a fragile Tom Clarkson and, seeing as Grantley already appeared to be rowing with Jasmine when they walked in, he thought Rachel's introduction would be amusing. When Rachel began to speak, Grantley's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"My name's Rachel Mason and I've been appointed head teacher at Waterloo Road with immediate effect." The room remained quiet as the staff's faces formed into expressions of surprise, although Eddie couldn't help but notice a couple of the male staff already looking her up and down appreciatively. He couldn't deny noticing Rachel's figure, despite her work attire, but he glared at the others anyway, wondering why it irritated him so much.

He realised his eyes had glazed over slightly partway through Rachel's little speech but he focussed again in time to hear Steph putting her foot in it. "Oh no, what about me daily dose of Bolton Smilie?" she sneered as Grantley sniggered along. "That's Bolton as in conceived in Bolton," she explained as Rachel drew herself up like a cat about to pounce. Steph didn't appear to notice as she added, "Well, fine by me, as long as I get to teach the bright kids!"

"I think you might find, Miss Haydock, that the conditions of your employment require you to teach all children," Rachel hissed dangerously, "irrespective of ability." Eddie smiled inwardly at her words. As much as he may have disliked this new head, he couldn't deny that Steph was out of order. As Rachel continued her tirade, he noticed Grantley muttering something derogatory to Tom and he saw that she heard it too, despite her not acknowledging anything. By the end of Rachel's little speech, feathers had been well and truly ruffled and as Eddie watched his fellow staff begin to fall into a haze of dissent, Rachel swept out, the tips of her perfectly straightened hair bouncing as she strutted off, leaving shock in her wake.

As the kids began to enter Eddie's classroom, ready for the enterprise initiative, he spotted an unimpressed-looking Rachel Mason approaching. Taking him to one side, she explained that she had discovered evidence of Grantley gambling on school computers. "Yeah I'll deal with that" he offered, "I found him in the computer room this morning."

"What, you caught him gambling?" asked Rachel, sounding horrified.

"No… look, I said I'll deal with it." Eddie told her in an attempt to stop her, but it was too late.

"No," she said, as if she thought he was trying to undermine her, "I will. Between this and his performance in the staff room, he's not going to last long under me. And that's your stuff from my office," she told him, producing a bin liner before walking past him into his classroom. Eddie found himself fuming again. If Rachel wanted to assert herself and gain his respect, she was going about it in completely the wrong way.

Although the enterprise day did seem to be going well, Eddie found himself feeling irritated. Rachel had undermined him again over some "staff appraisal" and now she was telling him not to go all "Kevin the teenager" on her. "Ria Cheetham didn't want me to say anything, but you are my deputy. If we do get college status, the LEA is going to insist on a full-scale staff restructuring. All posts, from me, right down to the assistant groundsman." So she was threatening his job now?! She looked so smug that he found himself sorely tempted to slap her. Even more annoying was the fact that he kept seeing her flirting with Brett bloody Aspinall across the room which made him furious, especially as no one else seemed to have noticed. She may have been subtle but he was sure Brett had a glint in his eyes as he looked at her and Eddie knew all about the little twerp's relationship history. Someone should probably have warned Rachel, but he didn't want to speak to her. She deserved everything she got as far as Eddie was concerned. Even worse was the fact that he'd just watched Grantley come storming out of her office. The woman was out of control, like a bull in a bloody china shop.

He found himself sat with Rachel at lunch and watched her picking at some salad. He wondered if all of this was an act to conceal the real Rachel and her nerves. He couldn't help but to stare at her. As much as she was annoying and difficult, she was gorgeous, with her auburn hair and her lips… Luckily for him, however, Steph sat down and started mouthing off again, distracting Rachel so that she didn't notice him staring. Once again Steph was demonstrating her incompetence, not even knowing what a PSP was, and he found Rachel getting defensive again as she stood up to leave. "Enjoy your Candice special," he smirked as Steph pushed her plate away.

He followed Rachel back up to her office, where she was helping Bridget with some paperwork. Eddie watched as she bent over the desk, finding his eyes drawn to a certain area. He shook himself when he realised what he was doing and pushed Rachel's pert bum to the back of his mind as Steph appeared in the doorway. Yet again, she upset a member of staff and Eddie decided it was time to step in. "I've seen enough," he told her as he followed her into her office.

"No you haven't, not by a long chalk."

"Now, you're not an unintelligent woman, I can see that, but what are you trying to prove? Steph Haydock? Grantley Budgen? They're not the greatest in the world, but they've clocked up more teaching years than you've had of life," he growled.

"Well, so what? Tell me I'm not right," she said, knowing full well that she was indeed correct in her assumptions.

"Well I hope you know what you're doing because-"

"I know exactly what I'm doing." Rachel told him.

He sniggered. "Such confidence. How long are you staying here?"

"I don't know. My first task is to get-"

"College status, yeah. And after that?" she looked suddenly unsure of herself. "It's just that you're doing all this 'bomb up the backside' stuff as if it means something to you. You're an associate head. You'll be gone in six months." And with that, he turned and left her staring after him with a look of slight worry. Somehow, despite feeling faintly guilty, a sense of satisfaction had built up in his chest and he didn't look back.

By the time Rachel reappeared in his classroom that afternoon he was angry again. "Listen; it's not up to me if I stay here or move on," she told him as they wheeled a whiteboard across the room.

"I just want to know how you can even hope to get people working with you when we all know you're leaving at the end of the year!" he fired back.

"It's not my system Eddie," she tried to argue.

"Suits you pretty well though, doesn't it?" he replied, leaving her stood staring at the floor like a schoolchild.

It wasn't long before she was in pursuit. "You're a dinosaur! I'm not surprised they never offered you Jack Rimmer's job!" That stung him and he found his pulse rising as he followed her towards a smirking Aspinall.

"Listen! You've been here ten minutes and already you've thrown a grenade into the curriculum and you've upset every single teacher in this school. All I'm asking for is just a little more subtlety!" their hushed tones were developing into harsh hisses of anger.

"I will give my all to this school, however long I stay!" she spat, her face inches from his and her cheeks flushed with intensity. As they both turned away, Grantley came in looking incredibly sheepish.

"Ah Miss Mason, I just… I'm sorry… about my attitude, earlier, please rest assured, it won't happen again." Eddie turned around in amazement, just in time for the cherry on the cake. "Mm, I must say, I'm very impressed at what they've done. You don't mind if I have a look-see do you?" Eddie has never heard him sound so terrified.

"Go ahead," Rachel told him.

"An apology from Grantley Budgen; you into black magic or something?" Eddie asked, secretly impressed despite his sarcasm. Rachel Mason really was a force to be reckoned with.

Tom was the next member of staff through the door. "Rachel. I… Listen, I've just had a call from the police. Chlo's been arrested. Is there any way-"

"Go, go!" Rachel told him, smiling at his obvious excitement, "I'll cover your lesson."

"No Mika?" Tom asked Eddie as he shook his head.

"Well, if you see her, would you let her know?"

"Of course." Eddie replied, understandingly.

The presentations began minutes later and Eddie found himself reluctantly impressed, especially by Janeece and Maxine's photography business (embarrassed as he was by his own photo). Next up was Brett which Eddie had been dreading, mostly because he couldn't stand the lad, but also because Rachel seemed keen on him and that didn't sit well with Eddie.

When Eddie noticed Mika Grainger in the doorway, he felt sick but before he could stop her, Rachel went running forward. Mika was clearly drunk and Rachel didn't know the circumstances. "Excuse me, what are you doing?"

"How's this for your headline? Posh egomaniac screws girlfriend's sister." Mika announced, bitterly. Oh no Mika, he thought.

"I'll deal with this," he told her, but Rachel grabbed his arm to jump in herself.

"My sister's missing because of you," Mika slurred. "She could be dead, and all you care about is showing how clever you are with a poxy school newspaper!"

"Stop it," Rachel said, trying to grab hold of the drunken blonde.

"Who the hell are you?!"

"I am your headmistress and you are my pupil-"

"I'll sort this out, I know the history…" Eddie tried to intervene, but it was too late. Mika promptly threw up all over Rachel who shrieked in disgust. The pair of them manhandled Mika away as Brett clapped a hand to his mouth.

Back in Rachel's office, Eddie laid Mika down on the sofa as she went to clean herself up. When Rachel reappeared, she tapped him on the shoulder and beckoned him out to Bridget's room. "What the hell were you playing at? Don't ever undermine me in front of pupils again! I am perfectly capable of handling-"

"Listen," Eddie butted in, disgusted by her insensitivity, "that girl lost her mother six months ago. She's Chlo Grainger's sister." Rachel suddenly looked guilty. "I know the background, that's all. Nobody's trying to undermine you."

"I'm sorry," whispered a humbled Rachel, pressing two fingers to her forehead as if it hurt her. "Mika, love, can you hear me? How much have you had to drink?" She suddenly sounded motherly and caring.

"Bottle of vodka," Mika murmured.

"Oh," Rachel turned to Eddie.

"I'll ring Tom," he said, calmly, his anger suddenly dissipated.

"Thanks," she replied from where she knelt beside Mika, sincere now that she was worried for a pupil. "Listen, I'm gonna stay here; can you give out the prizes?"

"Yeah, of course," he reassured her.

"You'll be alright, my love," he heard Rachel saying as he left. "Might have a sore head in the morning, but we've all been there."

"I'm so sorry."

"Hey, chalk it up to experience. Always feel better after being sick, huh?"

"I can't believe…"

"Come on, you made a mistake. But you're gonna get through. I've got some good news for you; Chlo's been found."

As Eddie went to judge the competition he was confronted by both Steph and Matt, but somehow made it there in one piece. In spite of himself, he awarded Brett's team with the prize, although he had to stop himself punching the smarmy git in the face.

Finally Eddie had to brace himself for one final confrontation over his risk assessment forms. Rachel went so far as to tell him she wouldn't have authorised the trip at all. "You see," he said, "that's where you went wrong today. It was in the assumption that traditional education has nothing to offer a certain type of kid. They all need qualifications, even if they're going to do something more vocational. Brett Aspinall won your little competition today, not one of the kids you were really targeting."

"But you were the judge," Rachel argued.

"He was the best. I'm not into positive discrimination. What was today about for you Rachel? Proving that you can throw the baby out with the bathwater?"

"Hardly."

"That's what it seems like to me."

She had the grace to look affronted at this. "I do know what I'm doing, trust me on this one Eddie." She gave him a searching look. "So can I count on your support?"

He looked at her for a moment before turning to walk away, leaving the headmistress silent at her desk. Deep down, he liked Rachel Mason and for some reason he couldn't get her out of his head that night, no matter how hard he tried.


	2. Chapter 2

After a bad start, Rachel and Eddie somehow managed to put up with each other over the next week and by the time Rachel came into school to find Eddie packing up a pile of tents, they were on fairly good terms. ""Funny, I thought the trip was to Derbyshire, not the DMZ," she grinned, still uncertain about the trip. As the two bickered about whether or not the trip was a good idea, Rachel found herself warming to Eddie. He seemed to want the best for the kids, which was more than she could say for Grantley Budgen.

She'd overheard him telling a disgruntled Eddie that "You can't turn a bad lad into a good one by sticking him in a canoe." She still relished the fear in his eyes when he realised it was her stood behind him to overhear his grumbles and Eddie's eyes were dancing as she raised an eyebrow at him.

As Rachel stood talking to Tom Clarkson, she couldn't ignore Eddie talking to Davina Shackleton. She may have liked Davina but she'd already heard enough rumours about her love life and she didn't approve of Eddie having some kind of unprofessional relationship with her. After all, he was the deputy head. It was inappropriate and it irritated her. For some reason she found herself giggling more at Tom's jokes and not shrugging away the hand he'd put on her arm. Shifting her eyes back to Eddie, she was satisfied to see a disgruntled look on his face as he caught her eye. "Well, I'd better let you lot go," she murmured, stepping away from Tom to speak to the group of teachers as a whole. "Good luck with them." She could feel Eddie's eyes following her as she walked back into school to start the day.

Just hours later, after a nightmare day between trying to talk Brett Aspinall round and look after Sally Dobbs and her brother, she got a call from Eddie to say they were on their way back. Apparently Bolton Smilie had managed to trick Eddie into jumping off a cliff and he was now in a neck brace. Rachel couldn't help but to chuckle when he came off the bus looking so sorry for himself. "What hurts most; your neck or your ego?"

"I've had a bad day."

"Your day's been a piece of cake compared to mine," she told him, only half joking.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Yeah. Come on, we need to talk to a parent, I'll explain on the way," she said as they began to walk side by side, on a mission.

By the time Sally and her mother had been reunited, they were both worn out. "Fancy a brandy?" Rachel asked.

"Miss Mason, I'm shocked. Drinking on school premises?" Eddie smirked.

"Well, I like to keep a bottle handy for days like these. I won't tell if you won't," she winked at him. "I think we can agree that the outing was not a resounding success."

"It was a bloody shambles, you must be over the moon." Eddie muttered, clinking his glass against hers as she came to sit down beside him.

"Course I'm not," she replied, "Yeah, I had doubts about the trip, but I didn't want it to be a failure." Eddie couldn't help but notice how unteacherlike she looked, slumped in her chair with a brandy in hand.

"Yeah right."

"Obviously the sight of you like that is something I wouldn't miss for the world…" she grinned.

"It's hilarious," he deadpanned, "good job it only hurts when I laugh."

Rachel giggled again, "No, I would've loved the kids to come back transformed by the experience. I know that's what you wanted. I think that's the mistake you made today, actually," she explained, using his own words from the previous week, "I think you set your sights way too high. The success rate with kids like Bolton, it's so low."

"I know," he sighed, "I just wanted to kick some arse; get 'em excited."

"Well now you're talking!" Rachel's face lit up. "Never give up. How about you and I put our heads together and we'll see what we can come up with? I promise you, by the end of the school year, their arses will be well and truly kicked." The glee on Rachel's face as she whispered this last sentence managed to raise a smile from her deputy.

"Go on then Rach, we'll see what we can do."

Rachel smiled at him as they both downed their brandy and began to chat about the ways they could get through to Bolton and his cronies. Eddie watched as the usually-frowning Rachel's eyes began to sparkle and her speech became fast with excitement. Suddenly he realised why the LEA liked her so much. She was ten times more enthusiastic than Jack Rimmer, as disloyal as it felt to admit it, and she was funny too. By the time they walked out to get their taxis home, it was dark out and they'd had a glass or two more of the brandy. It was good stuff; he couldn't deny that Rachel Mason had great taste when it came to alcohol.

The rest of the week flew by and by Friday, when they'd organised an archaeological dig, Rachel and Eddie had grown rather fond of each other. Rachel actively found herself scheduling meetings with Eddie just because she enjoyed his company, and for his part, Eddie certainly wasn't complaining. While Rachel still seemed slightly cautious of him and Eddie still found himself irritated by Rachel's cold manner, things were going well. They were in the middle of one of these 'meetings' when Grantley came walking in on one of their frequent squabbles. Eddie had been being as pessimistic and negative as ever about Rachel's enterprise scheme when they were interrupted. "You're not going to believe this," Grantley said, somehow causing a spike of dread to pierce Rachel's heart. "They've found a baby on the bloody dig."

"What do you mean, a baby?" asked Eddie as Rachel turned white.

"A corpse. I've sent them inside, but I think you'd better come and have a look."

"Well of course we'd better," Rachel interrupted, grabbing her coat and launching herself to her feet, Eddie by her side. Grantley lead the way as they began to storm through the school, a force to be reckoned with. The musical rehearsal ground to a halt as they flew past, Rachel fierce, Eddie horrified.

As they arrived at the dig-turned-grave, Rachel felt her blood run cold. "Who would bury a baby on a school field?" she asked, knowing exactly what kind of person would do such a thing.

"You haven't been here long, have you?" Grantly muttered as Rachel clasped a hand to her throat, nausea overcoming her. She had known a girl who did the exact same thing back in her 'pre-teaching days' as she liked to call them. She could have so easily found herself in the same situation; the girl in question had once been her flatmate.

"The police will have to find out who the mother is. It could be one of the girls in this school," she stated as the realisation hit. "Eddie, can I leave you to tell the staff? I'm going to stay and wait for the police." But Eddie merely stared into space, horror written all over his face. "Eddie?"

"Yeah, course," he said, walking away with Grantley and leaving her to stare at the tiny skeleton as tears began to blur her vision. That baby was a person, a person that probably would have one day become a pupil at her school, but just like Sophie's baby it had died for nothing, without even a proper burial. She thought back to that awful night, the night she realised she couldn't do it anymore.

 _Screams were coming from Sophie's room, but she didn't have a customer in there. She knocked quietly on the door but only got sobs in response. "Soph? I'm coming in." she called to the girl, opening the door cautiously. The sight she was greeted with was one of despair. Sophie lay on her bed, her head in her hands and her legs apart. Her hair was messy and her brow coated with sweat. There were bruises still fading from a bad client she'd had weeks earlier dotted around her body._

 _"_ _Sophie? How long have you known?" Amanda whispered frantically, as a guttural moan ripped loose of Sophie's lips. "Soph?" Amanda found herself getting more and more terrified._

 _"_ _I… I've only missed-" suddenly Sophie had to clench her eyes shut again._

 _"_ _Soph, we have to get you to hospital. Look, I'll go and call an ambulance, it's going to be okay." Amanda consoled her._

 _"_ _No, you can't! Mandy, you know what Sean will do, you can't call them. For your sake as well as mine," Sophie hissed, gripping her hand tightly. Amanda knew she was right. Sean would beat her until she could barely walk, or worse. He'd done it before, and he wouldn't let the authorities get involved._

 _"_ _But Soph, the baby…" she tried pleading, but it was no use. The contractions were getting closer and closer together._

 _"_ _I can feel its head! You… need to have… a look."_

 _Shaking with fear and nausea Amanda bent down to have a look and sure enough she could see the crown of the baby's head. There was blood everywhere. "I think you're meant to push now, but I don't know. Soph, please, I don't know what I'm doing."_

 _Sophie began to push and soon enough the baby was out. Sophie was sobbing now, a guttural, harsh sobbing that came from somewhere deep within her. Amanda picked up the baby. It was cold and still. It wasn't crying. Amanda could hear someone hyperventilating, but it didn't feel like her. The tiny fingernails were blue, the damp baby slick with blood and sweat, its eyelids didn't flutter. Sophie was sitting now she faintly noticed, and she could hear her howling, but Amanda couldn't speak. Then she heard the door swing open and turned to see Sean in the doorway._

 _"_ _Get out," he told Amanda, his tone cold, but she just stood, still clutching the bloody corpse. "I SAID GET OUT!" he screamed. She laid the baby in Sophie's arms, and numbly crept out, still shaking. Once she got back into her own room, she realised she was still covered in blood and fluid. She curled up and began to sob silently, gasping for breath as she rocked back and forth. She couldn't comprehend it. Eventually she fell into a fitful sleep, her body still shaking, her breaths a little too frequent._

 _When she woke up, she tiptoed to the shower and scrubbed away all that was left of the encounter under the cascading stream of boiling water. When she went to check on Sophie, the baby was gone. She packed her bags and left within minutes, determined to get out. She'd known for weeks, months even, had planned it, but this was the trigger and she couldn't stay anymore. Weeks later, as she started her new course, she saw a story in the newspaper. They'd found the baby's remains, buried in a shallow grave in someone's garden and they quickly found Sophie too, and Sean. Rachel Mason thought it was as horrific as everyone else. But of course she knew nothing about it._

As she came out of her thoughts, Rachel heard the police cars arriving and went to meet them. It was going to be a nightmare day. As the police and the forensic scientists invaded, Rachel was asked to go and speak to the pupils. Deciding she needed Eddie to support her, she knocked on his classroom door. She found him staring into space. "Eddie?" she whispered timidly, acutely aware of her own red eyes and guilty conscience.

He looked up slowly, his eyes blank until he saw her. "Rach?" he said as his eyes filled with compassion. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She told him, trying to hide the quaver in her voice. "We have to talk to the kids and… I could use the help."

"I'm there if you need me to be," Eddie told her.

"I do."

They walked in a kind of understanding silence to their first classroom-full of students. "There'll almost certainly be a police investigation to find out who the mother is, but I want you all to be quite clear. This is not a witch hunt. If, and I know it's a big if, a girl in this school is the mother of this baby, I want her to know she mustn't be afraid to come forward. Whoever she is, she must be feeling very scared and very alone. I can't emphasize enough: we are here to help, we're not here to accuse or punish. And if any of you have any worries, you can come and see me or Mr Lawson, or Miss Haydock or… any member of staff, for that matter. Okay?" She repeated the speech to each class, Eddie by her side, somehow his presence managing to support her. By the time the bell rang, she was emotionally exhausted.

"Shall we go and check up with the police?" Eddie asked her. Rachel merely nodded and followed him back down to the field. They tried to find out as much as they could from the chief inspector but there wasn't much more they could do. Every time the detectives looked at her, she felt guilt seeping into her bones. She kept seeing Sophie's baby in her mind's eye; its body still in her hands, causing her to shiver involuntarily. The next thing she knew, the DI wanted her to give her lists of prospective mothers.

"I do hope you're not going to stigmatise Waterloo Road," Rachel tried to say, but it was too late. The police would be investigating her pupils. Steph took Detective Mellor away with her and Rachel was left to ponder what she would do if the girl in question was indeed a member of Waterloo Road. She decided that maybe paperwork would take her mind off it but she bumped into Eddie on her way back up and they ended up in conversation.

"I can hardly find my way around the school, and now this," she sighed as they entered her office.

"Rachel? There's a whole load of journalists here," Bridget informed her.

"Oh God," she felt herself close to tears, "Eddie can you deal with the press?"

"Me? But that's your job," Eddie reminded her.

"I know, but I just think in situations like these it's important that they have a woman to talk to and… you know, I'd like to be here for them," Rachel pleaded.

"Yeah, because us men, we're crap at all that sensitive stuff, eh?"

Rachel sighed. "Listen, today of all days, you and I need to work together as a team."

"Yeah, I know," Eddie replied resignedly, "just being an awkward sod."

"I think you've got a heart of gold," she smiled. Eddie turned back and gave her a modest smile before leaving. Once he'd gone, she laid back in her chair and let herself break a little.

By lunch, she'd managed to get through piles of paperwork, her mind numb. She was close to finishing it all when Eddie arrived. "Fancy lunch? I figured you could use a break." She smiled at him gratefully and accepted his offer.

"Can you believe, one of the journalists even asked to photograph the site?" he asked her angrily as they patrolled the corridors. "I could've slapped him."

"Um, can I have a word?" asked a stressed Steph. "I think we might've found our girl."

Rachel felt a sense dread settle itself in the pit of her stomach. "Who?" asked Eddie.

"Rhiannon Sedgewick. She's very troubled."

"Okay, well I'll talk to her," Rachel said

"But, the thing is, when you try and communicate with her she just clams up."

"Well, if there's anything in it, we have to talk to the parents," Eddie asserted.

"You two have enough going on, I'll do it." Steph offered "I'll get their details off Bridget."

As Steph turned to go, Rachel noticed Eddie staring at the ground, his face troubled. "You okay?" she asked him.

"Yeah, fine," he said, but she could tell he wasn't.

"Oh Eddie, thank you for dealing with the press."

"It was… no problem," he told her, but his mind was elsewhere. He turned and walked away, leaving her gazing after him.

Once she composed herself, she went back to her office where she found DI Chapman, ready to call the Sedgewicks. They were interrupted by Steph and Maxine. "I think I got the wrong girl," Steph explained.

Rachel put a hand to her head. "Bridget, could you get Mr Lawson up here please?"

When Eddie arrived, he seemed troubled still but as Rachel gave him a hushed explanation of what was going on, he was calm. As Rachel sat to listen to Maxine's account of the incident, he found himself stood a distance away, thoughts swilling with his son, Michael. The story was too hard for him to hear. He left abruptly.

"Hey. What's up?" Rachel said from behind him.

"I just can't cope with this," he admitted.

"Really, why?" she asked, concerned.

"It's nothing really."

"Oi, wait a minute, what?"

"Just reminds me how much I miss my son." Rachel was shocked. She felt terrible for asking him to do so much now.

"Eddie," she tried to say as he walked away.

"I've got a report to write, Rachel." She was left to digest both bombshells alone.

As she paced back and forth, Eddie suddenly came flying back into her office, clutching a sheet of paper. "One of the worst cases of bullying I have ever come across," he announced, stuffing it ino her hand and turning to leave again.

"Can we talk?" she asked him hesitantly.

"I think I might've gone over the top a bit. What if we actually have to cancel the musical?"

"Um, well, if it gets the message through… good?"

"Right, thanks for your support on that, I appreciate it," he told her, attempting to hurry off again..

"Eddie? Um, I didn't know you were a father?" she murmured.

"Well I didn't tell you, how could you know?" he asked her.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, worried she had intruded too far into his personal life.

"No, I'm sorry," he said, closing the door. "Truth is, I'm a father of twins. Only, one died." Rachel found herself feeling suddenly guilty, "cot death."

"Oh, God."

"Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: SIDS. What a stupid name," he said as he sat down on the sofa.

"I can't imagine anything more devastating."

"We did everything right. Put them to bed one night, then the next morning…" he paused and Rachel felt an urge to clasp his hand. "Alison couldn't handle it. She blamed herself. She blamed me, and he got herself a new boyfriend."

"That sounds like a way of coping to me," Rachel reassured him, suddenly worried for him, any earlier dislike completely cast off.

"Well, whatever it was, I was barred." Eddie's voice had turned bitter. "Whenever I went round there was a massive row. She said "it's not good for our son". I just wanted to see him." He realised Rachel was looking at him intensely now, her hazel eyes filled with concern and a newfound respect for him. "That's Michael," he told her, pulling out a photo of him holding a baby boy, which Rachel cooed at, "and that was Stephen."

Rachel held the two photos, her expression a mixture of regret and adoration. "And how old is Michael now?"

"Three and a half," Eddie smiled.

"You know Eddie, I might sound like an amateur psychologist, but one thing I do understand is how important it is for a child to feel loved by their parents. You see, I never felt that," Eddie noticed a shadow cross her face, "and, um… still hurts, after all this time." At that moment, a knock on the door drew them out of their thoughts and they stood up quickly, like guilty schoolchildren caught kissing in a cupboard, Rachel handing Eddie the photos back as Steph entered.

"Sorry to interrupt, but we've found out who the dad is. Lewis Seddon." Eddie turned to look at Rachel. "I don't think she wants to tell him, myself. She's terrified of what his reaction will be. I mean, do you think he does need to know?"

"Course he does," Eddie told her angrily, thinking of his own sons.

"Well I don't want to tell him; he's… well, we all know what Seddon's like."

Eddie sighed. "Yeah," Rachel agreed, "it's amazing what we discover about people's capabilities. You volunteering Eddie?" she asked softly.

"Yeah."

By the end of another long day, after Maxine's speech and an argument with Matt over Part Side Story, Rachel went to find Eddie in his classroom. Dropping a sheet of paper onto his desk she murmured, "That's your ex-wife's number."

"I know it."

"One little call won't hurt."

Eddie sighed, "I don't want you interfering in my life, Rachel."

She grimaced, "I've seen so much misery today, and you've got a child."

"Yeah, okay. But there's the added problem of my ex-wife." Eddie argued. "You don't know her."

Rachel decided to try a different tact. "Eddie, d'you fancy a drink?"

He smirked, "Only if it's mind-numbingly alcoholic."

"You're on," she grinned.

The two walked out together again, Eddie even opening the door for her as she passed. By the time they reached the pub, Rachel was really desperate for a drink. "I think it's the bus home for me," she grinned, as she moved onto her second glass of wine. "Although this was essential, I think, after the day we've had today." She turned to him smiling. "It's good to talk, eh?"

"To you, yeah," he murmured, looking at her in a way that she should have told him was unprofessional.

She dropped her gaze modestly. "Not to the ex-wife."

"Ex is the word," he growled. "And, believe me, I'm very happy about that."

"Yeah, but you're not happy without your son, are you? Wouldn't you be much happier if you could see Michael? I think you're letting the pain you feel push people out."

"I've said all I'm gonna say on the subject," Eddie cut in. "The last thing I need right now, Rachel, is for you to point out my faults."

"Go on, just call her. What harm will it do?" she tried.

"Any more of this, we're going to end up falling out," he warned her, finishing his beer. "Night Rachel." She watched him stand up.

"Night night," she murmured, smiling up at him. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he exited the pub. As soon as he was gone, she pulled out the number. "Hi, is that Alison Lawson?"


	3. Chapter 3

It was the morning of the presentation for Roch-BEC and Rachel's blood pressure was through the roof as she walked into school. "Morning," said Eddie, his voice still rough with sleep.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten!" she asked, noticing that he wasn't exactly dressed for the occasion.

"Uh, no. We're pitching Rochdale Business and Enterprise Centre ("Roch-BEC") to the DFES, which is why I'm out of my bed an hour earlier than usual." Rachel tried not to grin at the throatiness of his tone.

"You could've put on a tie or something," she teased, walking ahead of him into her office.

"Well, if that's what's gonna swing it, maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all!" he joked, following her through the door and grinning, "Hi Bridget."

She kept walking at a pace into her little room, stress evident in her body language. "Hey look, shall we have a go at this presentation? Wait, where's your stuff?"

"I know what I'm going to say, I just want it to come out naturally," he told her, trying to calm her down by placing his hand on her shoulder as she looked at him uncertainly.

"Well, I've added a bit to my section," she replied briskly, pulling away as she sat down to open her laptop. "Vocational Learning Entitlement for all pupils. Um, I take it you haven't spoken to your ex-wife yet?" he sighed, his easy smile of seconds earlier contorting into a slight frown. "Shouldn't you?"

He scoffed, "Haven't I said enough about that? Are you worried about this presentation or not?" he questioned, walking over to stand behind her, leaning on the back of her chair. She smiled up at him, her face suddenly relaxed, before leaning back and muttering something about getting on with the bloody thing. He smirked and let go of the chair, hands "accidentally" brushing her hair as he pulled them away. She stood up as he moved back, the chair banging into him as she did so.

"Right, come on we really ought to have a run-through," she told him reluctantly as she clicked onto the first slide.

A couple of slides in, he was already arguing with her. "You don't know how much this will mean to the children of this school, so we're begging you to consider-"

"Hang on a minute! Begging? Are you trying to make us look like a couple of pillocks?"

"Nothing wrong with a bit of sucking up if it works," she argued. Eddie frowned. He didn't like the idea of her begging anyone for anything, never mind a group of lecherous governors.

"There is such a thing as trying too hard," he responded. "Begging…" he rolled his eyes as he left.

Rachel sat back down and began to scrutinise herself with a mirror. Minutes later, she looked up to see Eddie returning in a tie, no less. She beamed when she saw him, his face unamused. "Sorry, had to nip out for something." He saw her smile and gave in. "Aw, it's a one-off okay?"

"And I appreciate it," she told him, "Come here." She stepped forward to adjust his tie and he felt his stomach do a flip. For god's sake, he thought, I'm behaving like one of the bloody kids!

"Rachel, your guests are here," Bridget told her and he watched the mist of worry descend upon her features once more.

"Thank you Bridget," she murmured.

"It'll be fine," Eddie reassured her, pulling her in for a squeeze of reassurance.

"Thank you Eddie," she whispered into his chest, pulling away reluctantly to go and meet the DFES.

She was a good actress, he gave her that. She never let on that she was in the slightest bit nervous or worried as she greeted the committee. Eddie pulled Nigel off to the side, "I think you'll be impressed Nigel, she's a cracking headteacher." The best part was, he meant it. Rachel was incredible.

Rachel's part of the presentation went incredibly well and Eddie was certain they'd get the status Rachel so wanted. He'd just begun his own part of the presentation when Bridget came to the door. "Mr Lawson, there's someone here to see you."

"Bridget, I thought I said absolutely no interruptions!" Rachel said furiously.

"Only, it's your wife." Eddie's heart sunk as he turned to look at Rachel.

"Excuse me," he said, walking out and leaving her to pick up the pieces. He knew Rachel had something to do with this and frankly, he was fuming.

He found Alison just down the corridor and his heart soared when he saw Michael in her arms. "Say hello to your dad," Alison commanded the little boy angrily, shoving him into Eddie's arms.

"Hiya mate," Eddie grinned.

"I've had enough Eddie," said Alison, her arms folded, "he's your problem now." And with that, she went stomping off down the stairs.

"This is stupid! I'm at work, you can't leave him here!" Eddie shouted back furiously.

"No Eddie! I'm done."

"Alison! For fuck's sake, you're being ridiculous! Come back!" He got no reply. "Why are you doing this now?" Suddenly he saw Rachel walking towards him. "She's left him with me!" he told her, disbelievingly.

"Listen, we've got to get on with the presentation," she reminded him, looking close to tears. "I'll get Jasmine to look after him."

"I'm not having another stranger upset him even more!"

"Eddie, did you hear me? We have got to-"

"Rachel, did you hear me?! You have got to present on your own! And if you want someone to blame, blame yourself!"

"I don't know your presentation!" she shouted after him, trying not to cry as Eddie turned and walked away, Michael in his arms.

Back in his office, he looked down at his son in wonder. Maybe this wasn't ideal, but he was thrilled to see his boy. Michael beamed up at him, his head surrounded by a halo of golden curls, his blue eyes wide with confusion. "Do you know who I am, Michael?" he asked, terrified his son wouldn't even recognise him.

"Daddy." Michael replied.

"That's right, I am your daddy and I've missed you. I've missed you so much," he whispered, pulling him tight to his chest, cradling him to his body.

The two of them spent the following hour talking and Eddie discovered that Michael's favourite colour was blue, he liked Thomas the Tank Engine and climbing trees. He pulled out some old photos to show him and pointed, "see, that's you." The little boy nodded shyly. "You didn't know you had a daddy either did you?" he asked.

"No, didn't know." Michael muttered, beaming angelically.

"I'll tell you something, I'm never going to let you out of my sight, ever again, okay?" Michael nodded. "Do you like cars? I've got a 4x4. It's like a big tractor. D'you want to see it?" he asked him.

"Yes please daddy," Michael answered, grabbing Eddie's hand as they stood up to go for a ride. Eddie smiled, elated to have his son back. He meant what he said, he couldn't let himself lose Michael again.

Meanwhile, Rachel was meeting Alison in a café. "Okay," she told the blonde across the table as their coffee arrived, "I've got about five minutes."

"Look, if you're here to plead Eddie's case then-"

"I'm not interested in being a marriage counsellor," Rachel cut in, "but from where I'm standing it looks like you're using your little boy to get back at Eddie."

"What gives you the right to an opinion? You have no idea what I've been through!"

"Well, I've got an inkling because Eddie told me," Rachel told her.

"Oh yeah, I can just imagine his version of events," Alison sneered.

"What I don't think you know is the hell he's been through too," Rachel tried to explain.

"Yeah, must've been really tough," Alison said, her voice laced with sarcasm. "When the only thing you've got to worry about is when the next live football match is on."

"Eddie told me that you had a boyfriend?"

"No, a few months of a screaming baby test the most solid relationships. No, I was the one left with the nappies while Eddie had his freedom." She looked Rachel up and down. "He went out to play the field."

Rachel was amused that Alison would see her as competition, but she carried on. Look, I just think that you two really need to sort this mess out. I really need a deputy I can rely on. So please?"

"Fine, I'll talk to Eddie, but I'm doing this for Michael, not for you and especially not for Eddie." Alison told her, standing up to leave.

"Can I give you a lift to the school?" asked Rachel.

"If you don't mind," said Alison.

"Not at all."

"So what's going on with you and Eddie?" Alison asked Rachel.

"What do you mean?" Rachel asked.

"Are you just dating or is it more serious?"

"Oh no, Eddie and I are just colleagues and… well, friends, I suppose."

"Hmm," said Alison suspiciously, "well if you say so. For what it's worth, I think you're a good match for him."

Rachel laughed at her. "When did you last see Eddie, anyway?"

"I think it was just over a year ago," Alison admitted.

When they pulled up beside Eddie's 4x4 in the carpark, he was in there with Michael, who was pretending to drive it. "I've just got to nip out for a second," Eddie told his son when he caught sight of Alison exiting Rachel's silver Mercedes.

"So what's this all about Alison?" he asked her expectantly.

"Let's talk Eddie," she said.

"Show starts in ten minutes Eddie," Rachel informed him. Then she added quietly, "I really ned you there."

"She's some woman," Alison grinned as both of their gazes followed Rachel walking away.

"Yeah…" Eddie smiled. "Second scariest woman in the world."

Alison giggled, then her face was suddenly serious again. "None of this should've happened. I want to explain why, only it might take a lot longer than ten minutes."

"Come on then. We'll talk later, for now why don't we take Michael to see the show?" he asked.

"Okay, but we do need to discuss this. Rachel was right."

"She generally is," Eddie agreed.

"So what's the deal with you and Rachel then?" Alison asked him mockingly.

"We're just good friends," Eddie assured her.

"Well I'm glad you two have your cover story straight with each other in any case," Alison smirked, scooping Michael up as they set off into school.

Rachel saw Eddie entering the theatre with Alison and Michael, sitting them a few rows back before coming to sit beside her. He grinned at her, raising an eyebrow and she smiled back as he turned to mouth something at Tom before turning to the stage as the show began.

"What was Matt worrying about?" Rachel murmured in his ear.

"I have no idea," he whispered back, finding himself inches from her face. She looked into his eyes as he pulled a strand of hair back from her face before his hand found its place on her shoulder. Rachel couldn't help but to relax into him, ignoring her worries about unprofessionalism as Matt and Steph appeared. She caught his eye when Steph began to act and both had to look away for fear of laughing. Then the doorbell mooed, and both clapped hands over their mouths in an attempt to stifle the uncontrollable laughter bubbling its way out of each of them.

"Ding dong!" said Karla, which just made things worse. Rachel's stomach ached and he could feel her physically shaking with hilarity as the sound effects continued to go wrong and Steph's dreadful acting got worse. Eddie shook his head at her as she was bent double, unable to stop herself, but the sight of the headmistress so hysterical was too much for him to take and he too found himself chuckling uncontrollably as the action on stage stopped. Rachel turned to beam at him but found her eyes stopping on a woman's face. It couldn't be, could it? No, she thought, Tess was long gone. Sean had taken her down with him and Rachel was so sure she'd never see her again. It couldn't be. She was being paranoid. That part of her life was over, encapsulated with Amanda and everything else that had gone with it in a corner of her mind she rarely unlocked while conscious. Tess Doyle couldn't be here, couldn't recognise her. She wasn't Amanda Fenshaw, she was Rachel Mason.

She tried to focus on the rest of the show, laughing at Tom's improvised jokes halfheartedly, but she couldn't get the woman off her mind. It may have been years but she couldn't really shake Amanda from her life. By the interval she had managed to work herself up into a panic and she found herself beckoning Eddie into the room of governors. She felt sick. Even as she spoke to the governors calmly and sipped at her coffee like Rachel Mason, the sophisticated adult, she could feel her stomach churning. And then she heard a familiar voice. "Congratulations everyone, the kids did you really proud."

It was Tess. It was definitely Tess. The nausea overcame her and she murmured "Excuse me." Before rushing out into the staff toilets where she promptly vomited, purging her stomach of everything she'd eaten, tears streaming down her face as she continued to retch. She couldn't breathe, she felt her head spinning, but she knew she had to get back. Flushing the toilet and splashing her face with water, she washed her mouth out and checked her reflection. She looked fine. She was used to acting like there was nothing wrong.

She took her place next to Eddie just as the show began. "You alright Rach?" he asked, his features concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine Eddie, I realised I hadn't sent this email to a parent and I just knew I'd forget again if I didn't do it that very second," she lied convincingly, before dropping her voice to a whisper. "Sorry I left you alone with that lot," she murmured into his ear.

Once Eddie was distracted, she leaned forward to search for Tess. She was finally gone. "You alright?" she suddenly heard Eddie asking.

"Yeah, just…nervous."

"Rachel, I'll never be able to repay you for what you've done." He told her, "It isn't just seeing Michael again, I think me and Alison are really talking too."

"I'm glad," Rachel smiled as he put an arm around her again, making her feel calm.

By the time the show was over, she just wanted to get home and, after the good news about Roch-BEC and a quick chat with Eddie, she headed off.

Back at home, alone in the house built for a family where she lived all by herself, she crumbled. She slumped onto the floor and began to sob, he body shaking, her vision blurred by tears. Thinking back to Amanda she found herself repulsed again and ran to the toilet where she threw up yet again, her makeup smudged and her hair a tangled mess. She poured herself a glass of wine, then another, and another, until a whole bottle was gone. She drank until she couldn't feel a thing then she felt dizzy. She returned to the bathroom floor, for fear of vomiting, but she wasn't sick. She passed out, still crying although she couldn't feel the tears anymore, the pain was too much yet she was numb now. What a great start to her Christmas holiday.

 _A/N: Please review and let me know what you're thinking so I know whether to carry this on or leave it as there isn't much interest. Thanks for reading this far!_


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